Yesterday UNISON NEC members, regional convenors, past Presidents and all national staff met at 130 Euston Road London to mark the opening of the union's new national centre. General Secretary Dave Prentis and President Angela Lynes unveiled a plaque and made brief speeches outlining their pride in the union's achievements over the past 18 years and addressed the difficult challenges ahead:http://www.unison.org.uk/news/news_view.asp?did=6828

Wednesday, 18 May 2011

With fury mounting from EU bankers over the lack of progress the recession-hit country has made in implementing reforms in return for loans, the government said on Tuesday that it would forge ahead with mass layoffs in the one million strong state-sector.

In Cardiff last weekend, about a hundred young members came together for UNISON's national young members weekend. In a change to the normal workshop format, delegates this year had the chance to put theory into practice there and then - out in the streets!

On the afternoon of Wednesday 18 May the UK Government will announce their plan to spend several billion pounds over the next five years on new nuclear-armed submarines. The statement will be made to MPs in the House of Commons.

The co-operative ideals of mutualism and fairness allowing affordable food, local distribution and the payment of a dividend (the famous co-op ‘divvy’) have long been held in warm regard by the left across the UK and indeed in Europe. But perhaps it is time for the left and the Blairite caucus (aka David Miliband's resurgent acolytes) to take off their rose tinted glasses and look at this latest development from Co-ops UK: http://www.egovmonitor.com/node/41983

Tuesday, 17 May 2011

UNISONActive has previously analysed the elections results in Scotland pointing out that the electors voted against the cuts by supporting the party making them, the SNP, and fell for “The SNP’s unashamedly populist fib that we can have public services without paying any taxes (latterly borrowed by Labour)”.

Monday, 16 May 2011

UNISON has produced a new report that warns about the high cost of PFI. The report shows that PFI is not value for money but the Coalition and the Scottish Government are both continuing the “chronic waste of public money”, despite strongly criticising it in opposition.

The ETUC Congress, which is held every 4 years, opens today in Athens. Proceedings will be dominated by the austerity measures implemented by Governments across Europe which are all, regardless of their notional differences as conservatives, liberals or social democrats, committed to neo liberal policy prescriptions of draconian cuts in public services, pay, pensions and social security: http://www.etuc.org/a/8588